Held every July, the “Encontro de Miolos de Bumba Meu Boi do Maranhão” is a tribute to the anonymous figure: the “Miolo do Boi,” the person responsible for carrying the wooden frame that represents the ox in the groups that enliven São João in São Luís.
The celebration of this invisible reveler has been taking place since 2001 and brings together dozens of embroidered capoeiras, which are the ox hides, produced for months in workshops and feature embroidered images of the themes and characters that the groups pay tribute to. The ox hides embroidered with beads and colorful sequins are displayed throughout the day on the sidewalk of Rua Portugal in Praia Grande, the Historic Center of the capital. In the late afternoon, the “miolos” dress their oxen and parade through the neighborhood, concluding with a grand celebration involving tourists and locals alike.
